Bhagavad Gita Ch15 part 01 on 03 July 2021

Full Transcript(Not Corrected)

Om Vasudevasutam Devam Kamsachanuram Ardhanam Devaki Paramanandam Krishnam Vande Jagadgurum Sarvopanishadogaho Dogdha Gopalanandana Partho Vatsa Sudhir Bhokta Dogdham Geetha Mritam Mahat Mokam Karoti Vachalam Pangum Langhayate Girim Yat Kripatamaham Vande Paramananda Madhavam By the grace of the Lord, we were able to complete 14 chapters of the Bhagavad Gita. There are only another 4 more chapters, 15, 16, 17 and 18. Today we are going to start the 15th chapter. What is the name of the chapter? Purushottama Yoga. This word Yoga means that which takes us to God. Every chapter or the teachings of every chapter take us to God. That's why every chapter is called Yoga. Let us recollect when I was speaking of the first chapter, which is called Vishada Yoga, the yoga of grief. Only when suffering, grief, pain is able to make us think, turn our attention towards God, then only it becomes a yoga and Arjuna's overwhelming grief turned him towards the Lord and he surrendered himself. When Arjuna surrendered, the Lord had taken over the reins of his life and as I mentioned, the imagery that the Kurukshetra field, Kshetra means field, is the world. Kuru means action, is the weapons and the guidelines is Dharma and Adharma, good and evil, righteous and unrighteous. And the Lord inevitably takes the hands of his child who has surrendered himself to him and guides him in the right place, lends moral support, inspires him, guides him aright and ultimately leads him to victory. That's why it was called Arjuna Vishada Yoga. And the 14th chapter appropriately is called Gunatraya Vibhaga Yoga. Recognize your body, your mind, that means the entire world is made up of three Gunas. The goal is to progress slowly from the lower Guna, lower state of consciousness, to the higher Guna, which is the Sattva Guna and go beyond the Sattva Guna. How to go beyond the Sattva Guna? Gunatita, such a person who succeeded, he is called a Gunatita, one who has gone beyond the three Gunas. But how did this person go? How does any person go beyond the three Gunas, beyond the thinking that I am the body, I am the mind? Only through Bhakti Yoga, through the aid of devotion. These are the actual words of Bhagwan Krishna, यो माम अव्यविचारेन भक्तियोगेन सेवते सगुनान समतित्यैतान ब्रह्मः पुयाय कल्पते Only a person who serves me, I will give him that knowledge. Why? How? Because the Lord is the embodiment. He is the storehouse of all knowledge. He is the embodiment of knowledge. And only those who have money, they can give money. Those who have courage, they can give courage. Those who have joy, happiness, they can only give joy and happiness. So the Lord is an embodiment of knowledge, both lower and higher. If anybody surrenders and says, I want lower knowledge. I want to become a scientist. I want to become a musician. I want to become a Prime Minister. This knowledge, how to become that and how to maintain that will come only from the source of God who is the source of all existence, of all knowledge and of all bliss. That was very detailed way delineated in the 10th chapter of the Bhagavad Gita. We have completed the 14th chapter. How to go beyond by surrendering oneself to me and who am I? And that is the subject matter of this 15th chapter. The Lord is called Purushottama. We have to reverse the words. There are two words Purusha and Uttama. Uttama Purusha, the Supreme Purusha. Purusha means normal meaning is a male, a man. That's not the meaning. That only applies to the physical body. The Divine Lord, Puri Sete Iti Purusha, He who infills the gross world, the subtle world, the causal world who experiences as Vishwa, Taijasa as well as Prajna called Ishwara. Such a person who is called Uttama Purusha. This chapter particularly describes that Uttama Purusha. What type of Uttama Purusha is that? And this is the second shortest chapter. The second of the chapters containing the shortest number of verses. It has only 20 verses. What is the first chapter? 12th chapter called Bhakti Yoga, the Yoga of Devotion. It also has only 20 verses are there. The next having 20 verses chapter is this 15th chapter. Now a brief introduction. We live in a world of cause and effect. Even though consciously we do not say I am trying to understand this world through cause and effect. Everything is cause and effect. I live here and I want to go to a town which is 20 miles away. I want to go. What is the shortest time? What is the best vehicle? This is called thinking in terms of cause and effect. If I walk, takes days. If I take a bike, takes a long time. If I take a car, still shorter time. If I can take a helicopter, still shorter time. So this calculation is called cause and effect. When we look at a tree, this must have come from a seed. When we look at a man, this man, person must have come from his parents. This is the world of cause and effect. The whole world is nothing but cause and effect. The whole scientific world is nothing but cause and effect. This world is a world of cause and effect. Even though we are not consciously thinking in that line, we are accustomed to looking at the world in the form of cause and effect. You approach a person and form your opinion. This person does not help. So he is a useless person. What is the cause? That this person is a miser. In the past he never helped me. So I do not expect. So I do not have good opinion about it. Why I do not have a good opinion? The cause is my past experience. This is how we are accustomed. This is a beautiful person. I like this person. And beautiful persons usually bring pleasure. Not necessary but many times this false logic is applied. But the point is not false or right knowledge, right reasoning. The point is we are creatures, even animals. Is there a source of food here? Then I must go there. No, there is no source of food there. There is a source of fear. And I know by past experience. I know by instinct. Therefore I avoid it. Only their reasoning is confined only to living and reproducing. Human being far outstrips everything in this world. He can think into the past, into the future. He can think in a vaster way looking at a vaster whole. And that is supposed to be proper way. Man can think deeply. Naturally when we look at this world and we are part of the world, some questions pop up. Especially three questions. What is the cause of this world? What is the nature of this world? What is my relationship with this world? Three questions. What is the cause of this world? Why? Because if the cause of this world is good, is positive, is joy-giving, then this world is a joyous world. If the cause of this world is positive, joyous, and that which causes only happiness, then that's its nature. Because remember always the effect which is the universe is nothing but the cause and that cause has to be found out. What is the nature of this universe? It is the nature of its cause. What is the nature of its cause? The short answer is Purushottama, Uttama Purusha. Then we are part of this world. We feel our what is called separatedness. Separatedness means relationship and relationship means whether it is positive, whether it is negative, whether it is joyous, whether it is binding, whether it is unhappy, all these things will come. If the whole world is divine and if I am part of the world, my nature also must be no other than divinity. These are the three questions very systematically and in the most appealing manner answered in this chapter. So what is it? The whole world. The chapter begins the whole world is compared to a tree. A tree is rooted in the soil but the roots of this tree symbolically is rooted above. Above means something beyond this world. What is that which is beyond the world? So for that we have to understand what here is something which is small, which is ugly, which is limited, which is binding, which is changing, which is experienceable, ever-changing. Samsara. So that should be that which is the beyond. That must be something which is unchanging, which is the subject, which is positive, which is absolutely eternal, infinite, without birth or death. That is how we have to understand it if we understand it properly. So looking at this world, comparing it to a mighty tree. A tree comes from a seed and this seed takes root in soil. Usually this is a symbol. So whatever tree we see, we never see the tree that which has its roots in the space above and branches below etc. But here this tree is unlike any other tree we know but for the sake of comprehension, understanding, easiness, it is compared to a mighty tree, Ashwathraksha and its roots are above. Above means that which is exactly the opposite beyond which is Brahman. Which is God. Naturally, just the thing we heard from me is the world is changing and it is limited and is full of both happiness, unhappiness, dualities and if this is the effect, how can the cause be different? The short answer is it is exactly the same as its root, as its cause. But we have not understood the world properly. It is not limited, it is not changing, it is not unhappiness giving, it is not binding, it is divine itself. So where is the problem? Not in the fact. The problem is in our understanding. That means our knowledge of the world is wrong. It is called Ajnana, wrong understanding, misunderstanding, partial understanding. Therefore, what is the remedy? Fulfill, have complete knowledge of the world. How can we have it? Only by knowing the cause. By knowing the cause, everything else is wrong. That is why this chapter is divided into these three questions. This chapter is the answer to those three questions put above. The answers to these three questions. God is the cause of this universe. God is manifesting as the universe. Hence the whole universe is divine and I who am part of this universe is also divine. When we understand these three answers, the goal of our life becomes clear and then we strive our best to manifest it. In fact, it is not that after understanding we will strive. We are striving even before understanding but albeit unconsciously. How are we doing? May I never die. May I never be ignorant. May there be no limit to my happiness. This is a prayer captured by our Rishis looking and analysing this whole universe. This is the whole essence of the 15th Chapter of the Gita. If you understood the three answers to these three questions, you have understood everything. For this purpose, to make this point clear, the Lord Krishna divides this whole universe into three beings. Remember, not living and non-living but three beings and all the three beings are called Purushas because besides God there is nothing else and you cannot call God an inert thing at all. As I mentioned just now, if we see something, a mountain, a river, the earth etc., we call it inert without consciousness. Therefore, we consider it inert but that's not because the universe is inert but because we misunderstand the universe because of Maya. So, the Lord makes it crystal clear to us the whole universe including Him, including God, including the universe, including me. The whole thing is divided into three Purushas. He calls it first Kshara Purusha, second Akshara Purusha, third Uttama Purusha. Let me give you a brief explanation. Kshara Purusha. What is the Kshara Purusha? Brahman in the form of the manifest universe is called Kshara Purusha. Instead of calling world, instead of calling universe, in this 15th chapter it is called Kshara Purusha. Probably we rarely come across this expression in any of the scriptures. At least I have come in very few of these statements. In this 15th chapter, in the whole of the Bhagavad Gita, this whole manifested universe is called Kshara Purusha. And what is this manifested universe? Whatever we experience, whether men, animals, trees, insects, rivers, mountains, earth, air, water, fire, space, the sun, the moon, the planetary systems, the cosmos, the everything that we experience is compressed under that one title Kshara Purusha. Then the second is Akshara Purusha. What does it mean? At the manifest universe, the same Brahman is called Akshara Purusha. What does it mean? In this universe, there are two subject and object. Usually for the sake of people who are slow to understand, the universe is called object. Object means that which is experienced. Drishya, that which is seen, the seer, the conscious being who experiences is called the subject. Everything he experiences is called the object. The experience is as we saw, it is not inert. It is Kshara Purusha, Bhagawan in the form of the experienced. But the real true nature is that he is Kshara Purusha so long as there is a subject. And so long there is a subject, the subject is called Akshara. Every Jeevatma, I, you, all the living beings including a mosquito, the mosquito also has an experience of all of us. So it looks at me, says is this a legitimate target? Is it easy target? Can I bite him? Suck blood out of him? So I become an object of its experience. But there is some conscious being in that mosquito who is called Jeeva. So that conscious being embodied in the enfoldment case consisting of body-mind which is nothing but the world and which is called inert, which is called object. He who experiences this world, he is called Akshara Purusha. Both are limited. Individual is limited. Ishwara is limited. So the object is limited. The subject in relation with the object is also limited. Though subject is a little more unlimited than the object, but the subject is also completely limited. And this is beautifully expressed in the Vedantic formula. Here is a person and he experiences three states constantly. The waking state, the dream state and the dreamless state. Again enters, the cycle goes on and on, not necessarily in that order. Waking, dreamless, dream, waking, dream, dreamless, dreamless, waking, dream, dreamless, dream and waking, any order. But there is somebody who never changes, who experiences everything and who collates all the three experiences. I was deeply asleep. I was dreaming. Now I am experiencing the waking state. All these three necessarily are experienceable states and I, the experiencer, is totally separate. The waking state, for example, it doesn't cognize neither the dream state nor the dreamless state. The dream state cannot cognize the waking or dreamless. The dreamless, of course, doesn't cognize those two. But here is a Purusha who says, I know I had that dream. I know I was awake at this time. I know that I had that tremendous good sleep, etc. But he doesn't change. Still he is limited. That's why he is called, though called Akshara. Akshara means undecaying. Really, truly he is undecaying but he is unlimited. But comprising both, manifesting as both is a Purusha. He is the third Purusha and that is so beautifully posited in this 15th chapter and he is called Uttama Purusha or Purushottama. The chapter gets its title because of this. As I mentioned just now, Purushottama has to be reversed. Uttama Purusha. That is to say, the highest being, not the best being. Best means, here is the best tree. It is the best man. Not in that sense. Comparative sense. Best means, it is the supreme and it comprises both the Akshara and Akshara. That is the meaning of beyond. Beyond both the Akshara Purusha. What is called the ever-changing, experienceable, objective universe. Beyond the Akshara Purusha. The unchanging, ever-witnessing, ever-collating, ever-harmonizing person. The witness, Sakshi. He is called Akshara Purusha. Do not mistake Akshara Purusha, the Jeeva with Brahman. But comprising both, beyond both, containing both Akshara and Akshara Purushas is Bhagawan. The greatest expression is expressed here. It is the great Mahavakya. That is to say, oh man, you are me. Oh universe, you are me. There is nothing excepting me. I became the Akshara Purusha. I became the Akshara Purusha and I am also beyond both. That's what Sri Ramakrishna's beautiful, a vignette, a most, a saying which is beyond anybody's understanding. God is with form. God is without form. God is both beyond form as well as formlessness. This is the essence of the 15th chapter. But I will give you a short summary of it. In the first two and a half verses, Krishna gives a description of the vast and endless samsara, world, by comparing it with the mighty Ashwathatori. Comparing it with The. I used the word The because there are any number of Banyan trees are there. Ashwathatori trees are there. Peepal trees are there. But this is a unique tree. The moment you say The Gandhi, The Mahatma, The Abraham Lincoln, that means we are talking only about one great soul. So like this tree, this samsara world is vast, many-branched, well-rooted and not easily destructible, not easy to destroy it. But it can be destroyed, not easy, difficult, very difficult, but it can be done. And to add to this is its mysterious nature. So this Jeeva, each one of us, I who am taking the Gita class and you who are listening to this Gita class, both of us are Jeevas, conscious beings. If you are not conscious, if I am not conscious, I either speak irrelevant things or I keep quiet. But if you are not so conscious, your mind wanders in between, comes back again, listens to a few words and goes back. So this Jeeva is caught in this samsara, helplessly being carried by the mighty stream of this world called Mahamaya, but all the time struggling to get out of this mighty stream. So in the next two and a half verses up to the fifth, Bhagawan talks about the means of getting out of this samsara. How to get out of this samsara? The first step is to develop detachment from this samsara by recognizing its binding nature. So long as we value worldly pursuits, worldly goods, our mind will never be able to seek freedom and we cannot start spiritual practice. Having withdrawn the mind from all worldly desires, one should seek Brahman, the cause of everything. Then Sri Krishna highlights what qualifications are necessary for attaining this freedom through knowledge. Freedom from reaction towards the pairs of opposite, pride, delusion and attachment as well as a deep sincere commitment to Vedantic inquiry that is emphasized in Shloka, verse number five. In the sixth, the Lord talks about the nature of Brahman. Brahman is not illumined by anything because it is self-effulgent. Attaining this Brahman, one does never again return to the samsara again. He will be forever free. Then in the following sections, Krishna reveals that Brahman alone manifests in the form of both jiva and jagat, individual soul, the conscious witness and the experienced world. From this it becomes clear that reaching Brahman, realizing Brahman, going to Brahman does not mean we have to travel. It means we have to change our notion, our thought in the mind that this world is something different from Brahman. As soon as we understand, whatever I see, I hear, I taste, I touch, I smell is nothing but pure God. I am that God. Then man becomes free. Then from the seventh to the eleventh verse, Krishna shows that the jiva, the consciousness in every being is only an expression of Brahman. Brahman being chaitanya swaroopa. Then the Lord also touches upon one of the most fundamental pillars of Hinduism called punar janma. At the time of death, this jiva alone takes the mind and sense organs from one body to another body. Just a short elaboration because explanation will come later on when we take up the verses. So what happens when this physical body falls away? As we know from one model, we have two bodies, the subtle body as well as the causal body. From another model, we have got four sheaths, the pranamaya kosha, manomaya kosha, vijnanamaya kosha and anandamaya kosha. So the jiva just gives up this body which has served its purpose like a worn out dress as we throw out every day, dirty, worn out dress, put on new dress. So the jivatma takes a new body. But for taking that body, temporarily it travels in the form of a sukshma, taking with him the sukshma and karana shariras or the pranamaya, manomaya, vijnanamaya, anandamaya koshas. And after a short time, it looks for a particular house where he can dwell there for some time more. And when that house becomes old, unusable, unlivable, dilapidated and then he moves on into a new house. It is this jiva which is fundamentally who thinks I am conscious being but everything is inert. He experiences everything through this ensargon, the whole world. Thus the Lord alone is expressing in the form of very life and its functions in every being. But the pure-minded sadhakas recognize this whereas the worldly people endowed with ajnana, ignorance, do not recognize this. From the 12th to the 15th verse, Krishna shows how the whole universe is nothing but the expression of Brahman. How does he do it? In the 12th, the Lord says, I am the light in the sun, I am light in the moon and I am light in the fire. These are the three that make life in this whole universe in the form of the sunlight and moonlight and the warmth, the fire. The Lord alone sustains all living beings from outside. What does he do? From inside as he resides inside us. Do you know how? Hydrochloric acid, jataragni, the fire of digestion. So he says in the form of what is called digestive fire. It is me alone that digests food. I supply food through the sun, moon and for heat and when the jiva feeds the body, then I reside within as jataragni called vaishwanaragni. I digest everything and then that gives energy. Food is transformed into energy. Energy is used to do activity. Activity is meant for evolution and the final evolution is to know sarvam khalvidam brahma. The whole universe is nothing but brahman. Then the Lord declares categorically that I am the author and the content of the Vedas as well as the knower of the Vedas. I am the Vedas. I am the knower of the Vedas. I am the creator of the Vedas. I am the content of the Vedas and accepting me, nobody knows what is Veda. That means the jiva who thinks he knows, he understands the scriptures is nothing but in the form of that divine knowledge which is the Lord. Thus Krishna reveals that brahman alone is in the form of jiva and jagat. Hence realizing brahman in the form of understanding only that supreme divinity is neither away from us nor inside us nor outside us but it is everywhere and in the next three verses the Lord reveals brahman in its true nature. Brahman in the form of the manifest universe as we discussed just earlier is called akshara purusha and brahman in the form of the jiva atma is called akshara purusha and both these purushas are relative, they are limited but comprising both these two purushas is the uttama purusha, the absolute. Because of its superiority, it is called paramatma, it is called purushottama, it is imperishable brahman because of which everything exists. Concluding this teaching, Krishna glorifies this knowledge as the only means of fulfillment with an undiluted mind, the one who learns and knows this most secret knowledge of purushottama becomes the knower of all and a person of fulfillment. This is the summary of this 15th chapter of the Bhagavad Gita. Now we will enter into a little bit of this but first of all let me chant a little bit so that we can test what it is there. Now is going to begin the 15th chapter and what is it called? Purushottama yoga, the yoga of the supreme person, Shri Bhagavan Uvacha. The Lord said naturally to whom? To Arjuna. Only to Arjuna? Don't forget, those who seek, they are all Arjunas. The Lord is declaring this teaching to every being in this world. Even an ignorant person is traveling towards knowledge alone. Remember Swamiji's definition, life is a journey from a lower truth to a higher truth, never from an untruth to truth. There is no untruth because the whole world is nothing but God himself. So Shri Bhagavan Uvacha, The Lord said, they speak of an imperishable Ashwatha tree with its root above and branches below. Its leaves are the Vedas and he who knows it knows the Vedas. This is a beautiful mantra from the Kathopanishad. Now commenting upon this analogy of the tree and this analogy of the tree comes in many places. For example, Kathopanishad, more or less the same thing will come. Urdhva Molo Avakshakaha Esho Ashwatha Sanatana Tadeva Shukram Tad Brahma Tadeva Amrutam Uchyate Tasme Loka Shridha Sarve Tadunat Yeti Kashchana E Tadvaitat Shankaracharya, remember, is one of the greatest poets in this world. He was a great realized soul. He was one of the greatest poets. He was one of the greatest philosophers. He was one of the greatest Acharyas. He was one of the greatest writers. Not only has he written, as I mentioned earlier in some other lecture, Shankaracharya's greatest contribution is all because of him. We are able to understand the Upanishads. He had commented upon 10 important Upanishads. Upanishads, all Upanishads reveal the same truth of God. But 10 Upanishads are called very important Upanishads. It doesn't mean others are unimportant. It means just because Shankaracharya made it crystal clear by his lucid and most marvelous commentary. Here I have to make a statement. Shankaracharya, that means any great Yogi, is not only a spiritual person. Every spiritual person is a depth psychologist because without understanding the mind, without analyzing the mind, without bringing up the bottom most hidden object in the unconscious depths of each one of us, we can never progress because what is spiritual sadhana? As I was mentioning earlier, it is not to gain something new but it is to reclaim what is already there by removing all the dust and dirt and Shankaracharya himself gives a beautiful analogy in the Isavasya Upanishad. Just as there is a piece of sandalwood and it is covered with dirt and dust, it is evil smelling. What to do? Take up a stone and take some water and go on rubbing it all around and at first all the ugly, filthy, evil smelling thing, paste will come out and go on doing it. Very soon, as soon as all this external covering is removed, we come to the real, real pith, real nature of the sandalwood which is the most pleasing smell. Believe me, this smell of sandalwood elevates the mind like nothing elevates the mind. I will not be untrue to say that nowadays so many companies are producing so many what is called fragrances to attract each other and to cover up ugly smells and to be more attractive to each other but nothing excels sandal paste. Why do I say so? Is there any special reason for that? Yes, when we study the life of Sri Ramakrishna, we find that whatever impurities we accumulated by committing various sins both through the mind, through actions, even including the speech, evil speech and that is most prevalent now. Even civilized people are accustomed to use words which at one time were completely forbidden in the civilized society. That's why Sanskrit is called the most refined language. You never find this kind of dirty language people use nowadays. That's why I do not wish even to speak about, I am not talking about this uncivilized, ignorant third-class people who are living at the bottom of the society. I am talking about our so-called prideful educated people and their writings, their normal speech is nothing but full of filth. Anyway, this is by the way of speaking Sanskrit language, the most refined language. You just speak Sanskrit and you will never be able to utter any impure word where the nearest I can get down. Sandalwood fragrance is that which not only smells most pleasant, removes all unpleasant smells but it purifies the impurities. This fact we come to understand by studying the life of Sri Ramakrishna. Anyway, if the time comes, we can expand upon it at some time in future but for now we are talking about the Kathopanishad citing the example, analogy of trees. Kathopanishad, many of the verses that we come across in the Bhagavad Gita including notoriously in the second chapter as well as in the fourth chapter as well as in this 15th chapter have been taken bodily lifted, slightly altered and put in the Mahabharata. After all, it is not a crime because Gita is supposed to be the essence of all the Upanishads. Then Mundaka Upanishad, a beautiful analogy of a tree is given. It is a huge tree and billions and billions of creatures are living upon it and at the lowest branch there is this individual soul. In the form of a bird and he is miserable, constantly he is experiencing sweet and bitter fruits and then suddenly whenever he experiences very very bitter fruit that means whenever man experiences tremendously unbearable grief, vishada, dukkha, painful pain then he looks up because he is shocked by nature and he sees there is a bird, it is made up of golden plume and he is sitting on the highest branch and he is as it were in a monument of bliss and then he says can I not also be like that bird and he takes one small hop and enters into the higher branch. So this is how these analogies are given and commenting upon this analogy of the tree, Shankaracharya's poetic talent bursts open. I have never come across such a marvellous description of the tree of samsara. This world remember is compared to a tree. Samsara is like a vriksha, ashratha vriksha, vast, huge, undecaying, practically it is eternal in a way of speaking. I'll come to that later on. It is difficult to destroy but it can be destroyed. Billions and billions of creatures come and go and stay there on different branches experiencing different fruits etc. What is the nature of this samsara? Why does life always push us upward towards our nature? This beautiful poetic description, negative description, the description with which we must start our spiritual life beautifully given in the most poetic Sanskrit language which I will quote in total even though it may be a little bit monotonous for some of you but then I will read out the translation done so beautifully by most revered Swami Ranganathanandji Maharaj. I have taken it from his book, the translation but I will come to it later on. What are we talking about here? The Lord said, they speak of an imperishable Ashwatha tree. It is called Ashwatha. The very word Ashwatha in Sanskrit, remember the whole Mahabharata, whole Ramayana, whole Puranas, whole Vedas, whole Upuranas, whole Dharmashastras are in pure Sanskrit language. This tree is called Ashwatha. Ashwatha means what? Shwa means tomorrow. Na shwa ashwa that means that which doesn't stay till tomorrow. Tomorrow means not 24 hours later. Tomorrow means next billy second. It will not be there. It is temporary. It is continuously, constantly undergoing change and yet it retains its trueness. There is this but it is imperishable. Samsara is imperishable. Let me insert a short note here. Is the world indestructible? Yes and no. Individually, yes. Collectively, no. That's why Samsara is called Anadi, beginningless. So the Lord said, they speak of this imperishable Ashwatha tree and why do you call it imperishable? Because its root, it is rooted in the imperishable with its root above and branches below. Curiously also, if you have ever seen, you can see in YouTube, you can see by googling a banyan tree. Sometimes it can spread 50 acres, 100 acres. It can spread any space. How does it do it? Because usually we don't know what happens. It can grow of course from a seed but as soon as it grows up, it starts sending out tap roots from the branches and these roots slowly travel downwards and take root in the soil, becomes another tree, connected yet distinct and it spreads further and then from it another tap roots are brought out and it spreads further. That all round it goes on spreading and spreading and spreading. In Adyar, in Chennai, there is such a banyan tree which is nearly half an acre wide. It's a phenomena we have to see to understand it but my point is this tree, it has its roots above. That means the cause of this universe is from above. Above means God. God means Brahman. Brahman means that which is imperishable, that which is infinite, that which is eternal. If the cause is eternal, the tree also is eternal. Samsara is also eternal. If the tree is undecaying, this is also so but as manifestation, it is constantly changing without losing its existence. Its very existence is rooted only in God. Simple words, God is only manifesting with names, forms and qualities and that's what we call the world. That's what we call the individual souls. So with its roots above and branches below. What are the branches? A graphic description is given later on in this very chapter. We will come to that. Branches means first just you see, imagine a seed and from the seed, a huge mango, say mango tree, mango seed is grown. Apple seed, apple tree is grown. From the apple tree, it produces many many apples and every apple is a potential seed source and from it again any number of trees. So it goes on spreading, spreading not only in trees every living creature that is called expansion of the species through propagation. Multiplication of the species through propagation. So the branches below and what are its leaves? Leaves are called Vedas. Why are the leaves called Vedas? Remember, I'm only giving what is called a short explanation now. I'll come to the long, elaborate explanation later on. Veda means knowledge. Simply that much is enough for us to know now. Without knowledge, our life will not go on. I'm attending the class. I have to attend the class. It starts with that. What time does the class start? At 7.30 and so what do I need? I need a medium, a tablet, a mobile phone, a laptop, etc., etc. So I need the knowledge. How to connect to this laptop to that particular one? So that is knowledge. The whole life is nothing but this knowledge. Knowledge in the form of what? Birth, growth, decay, old age, death. Knowledge in the form of activity and activity is what brings birth, growth, etc. Without energy, activity is not possible. Without food, energy is not able to produce and that food is supplied by God in the form of the sun and the moon and the fire and the digestive capacity. Whether it is a tree, it must have digestive capacity. An animal, an insect, it must have digestive capacity. We human beings, we must have the digestive capacity. Its leaves. This knowledge is life. Without this knowledge, there is no world. Therefore, the leaves of this tree are compared to the Vedas and he who knows it is a knower of the Vedas. He who understands the nature of this world, very briefly described in this 15th chapter, first verse, he is a knower. Then what is he going to do with that knowledge is a different matter. The scientists use it in one way and the spiritual scientists use it in a quite a different way. This is one of the most wonderful chapters and just before I stop, I'll pass it. It is also called Prasada Yoga. The name of the chapter is also called, though less popular, Prasada Yoga. Prasada means the God's sanctified food. Why is it called? Because it is a tradition in all orthodox sannyasins especially and many householders before eating food, this 15th chapter is chanted. But especially when there is a feast food, a 15th chapter is chanted and I have a little fun to make every holy person, sadhu, monk or a nun, they know that if we are attending a feast, feast means a lot of heavy food and willy-nilly my stomach will be more than filled and to digest, I have to pray to the Lord and so this chapter contains that beautiful verse, O Lord, in the form of the digestive fire, please help me to digest so that I can be ready for the next feast. So that's why every special feast today, the sadhus recite it, then Brahma Purnam is recited, then only food is taken. That's why this chapter is also called as Prasada Yoga. We will discuss about these subjects in our next class.